Rice bean (Vigna umbellata): names, uses, safety

Rice bean, Vigna umbellata, is a small, hardy pulse grown in the hills of north-east India, the Himalaya and Southeast Asia, often by farmers on slopes and in shifting cultivation. It is high in protein, tolerates poor soil, and comes in red, yellow, black and mottled seeds. It is a bean, not rice. The name comes from its small, oblong, rice-like seeds.

Botanical name: Vigna umbellata (Thunb.) Ohwi & H.Ohashi
Family: Fabaceae
Tamil: Rice bean
Hindi: Sutari
Parts used: Cooked seed
Habit: Hill pulse; rice is a grass
Last updated: 2026-10-25

How to recognise Rice bean

It is a twining or bushy annual with leaves of three oval leaflets.

Bright yellow pea-flowers grow in clusters on long stalks, which gives the species name umbellata.

The pods are long, slender and cylindrical, holding many small, oblong seeds with a pale, slightly sunken scar.

It is closely related to adzuki bean and mung bean. Its seeds are smaller and more elongated than adzuki.

Traditional use of Rice bean

Hill farming

In Meghalaya, Nagaland, Manipur and the Himalayan states it is sown in jhum fields and on terrace edges, often mixed with maize and millet.

North-east and Himalayan farm practice

Food

The seeds are cooked as dal, added to rice and soups, and the young pods and leaves are eaten as vegetables.

Hill food practice

Modern notes on Rice bean

Nutrition studies show rice bean is rich in protein, iron and calcium, and plant breeders see it as a promising underused crop for marginal land.

Like other pulses it fixes nitrogen, improving soil for the next crop.

Rice bean safety

Cook the seeds thoroughly, as with any dry bean.

Ecology and sourcing

It grows wild and cultivated from the Himalaya and north-east India through southern China and Southeast Asia.

It tolerates heat, drought and acidic soils better than many pulses, which makes it valuable in hill farming.

Farmers keep many local varieties, a store of genetic diversity that seed-saving projects work to protect.

Related plants

Also in Fabaceae

Questions about Rice bean

Is Rice bean rice?

No. It is a bean; the name refers to its small rice-shaped seeds.

What older names does Vigna umbellata go by?

Phaseolus calcaratus.

Where is Rice bean grown in India?

Mainly in the north-east and the Himalayan hills.

Sources

Educational page about a plant. It is not medical advice, not a diagnosis, and not an offer to sell. Traditional use is historical. If you need care, ask a licensed clinician. Questions: hello@meevamed.com.